UCLA FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Bruins' offensive line not putting up good front

Adrian Klemm didn't mince words. What took place Thursday morning was the worst offensive line practice the position coach has seen at UCLA.

The sloppy session, done without pads because of the Bruins' increasing injury count, neared closing time with a brutal sequence of penalties, dropped balls and even a safety.

Klemm has established himself as one of the nation's elite recruiters, but reinforcements won't arrive until fall. Right now, an offensive line that allowed 52 sacks last season still doesn't have any stable anchors besides center Jake Brendel and All-American Xavier Su'a-Filo.

Both players stood on the sideline for a number of snaps as backups took more reps and made more mistakes.

"It's a combination of guys not being focused," Klemm said. "Sometimes these guys feel sorry for themselves because we don't have numbers. It's a combination of them being young guys that lack experience.

"It's something that, all-around, we didn't have a great practice but we probably had the worst out of the entire team."

Asked how he felt about his line right now, Klemm replied: "I would expect to have two or three freshmen start this season. So that shows you how comfortable I am."

Smart money is on incoming guards Alex Redmond and Caleb Benonoch to seize spots atop the depth chart. The duo, ranked four stars by both Rivals.com and Scout.com, are the most touted in Klemm's seven-man haul.

Tuliaupupu has torn ACL

Redshirt sophomore Brandon Tuliaupupu's freak, non-contact injury at the end of UCLA's Wednesday practice turned out to be a torn left anterior cruciate ligament that most likely will sideline him until 2014.

Tuliaupupu made only three tackles last season but was getting increased reps through spring camp.

"It's really unfortunate," head coach Jim Mora said. "Boy, he was doing really a good job for us, too. The competition between him and (Seali'i) Epenesa was outstanding."

Epenesa is the only nose tackle available in spring camp, although defensive end Eli Ankou was tried there Thursday. Sophomore Ellis McCarthy is moving there once he returns from post-surgery rehab on his knee. Incoming freshman Kenneth Clark will also figure prominently in the depth chart come fall.

Hundley sharper

One question mark surrounding star quarterback Brett Hundley this spring was whether or not he would become more decisive. Even with some missed throws on Thursday, the redshirt sophomore has steadily shown better focus as a passer and runner.

"There were times last year he'd get in the pocket in games, drop back and it wasn't there, and he'd look at his feet or he'd look at the rush," Mora said. "Now, his eyes are up more and he's - boom, boom, boom."